James Lee Taylor to Lead Off-Broadway's TESLA

The Serbian-American scientist Nikola Tesla most known for inventing the rotating magnetic field and production and distribution of electrical energy based on the use of alternate currents has become more prominent over the years through museums and other art forms.

Fascinated by his life and the things he created, Serbian-American director, Sanja Bestic, has teamed up with writer Sheri Graubert to tell the story of Tesla's life in their new off-Broadway play, Tesla. The play, which will consist of an intimate cast of six actors, three of which will be playing double rolls, will have a preview night on May 23rd at 7pm. Tesla will officially open on May 24th at 8pm and run through June 8th at Theatre 80 with Sunday Matinees at 3pm.

With this year being the 70th anniversary of Tesla's passing, Bestic couldn't have thought of a more perfect time to bring Tesla into the spotlight. Putting her heart and soul into the life of Tesla, Bestic has gained the support of The Tesla Science Foundation, Nikola Tesla Club, Nikola Tesla Inventors Club of the US, The Consulate General of the Republic of Serbia in New York, The Office for Cooperation with Diaspora and Serbs in the Region, as well as Vuk Jeremic who is a Serbian physicist, Politician and President of the United Nations General Assembly.

The play lives out Nikola Tesla's final days in his New York hotel room as he is torn over the destruction and devastation occurring back in his homeland. It will take a look back through the eyes of an older Tesla into his younger years as a scientific inventor in his lab and work place. Tesla will explore the many risks Nikola Tesla took in the scientific realm discovering things that would have brought several advanced technologies to us many years prior to when we actually had them. It will also shine light on Tesla's relationship with Thomas Edison and will make the audience think twice about Edison's discoveries.

The play will star James Lee Taylor, a New York basEd English actor and model, who will fill the shoes of Nikola Tesla. Taylor, who grew up in a show business family (his father was a comedian and mother, a successful model), always harbored dreams of following in his parents' footsteps. Modeling and acting being his two main passions, Taylor is signed under Select Model Management and IMG New York and recently starred in the play, The Tiger. Graduated from the world famous Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute, Taylor is looking forward to bringing such an important character such as Tesla to life. He will also star in the upcoming documentary on Nikola Tesla next year also directed and produced by Sanja Bestic.

Director and producer, Sanja Bestic, grew up in Belgrade, Serbia where she pursued a career in theatre directing at the Faculty of Dramatic Arts at Belgrade University. She continued her education at the Moving Academy of Performing Arts in Amsterdam as well as the Michael Chekov Acting Studio and Lee Strasburg Institute for Theatre and Film. In 2010, she took all that she had learned and co-founded The Local Theatre NYC, a non-profit multicultural interdisciplinary art gallery committed to the research, production, presentation and interpretation of contemporary art. Sanja has directed many plays here in NYC such as The Tiger, Want & Need, The Doll and many others. She currently is directing and producing Tesla and will be taking the next step in making a documentary in 2014 on the mysterious life of Nikola Tesla.